One takeaway from the Lions’ embarrassing loss to the Eagles

What a complete and utter embarrassment. The Detroit Lions got stomped by one of their worst opponents this season, and it sends them into the bye week with a dreadful record of 0-8.

There is only one takeaway to be had from this week. The Lions don’t deserve anything more.

A major change needs to happen after the bye

I am holding back swear words to describe the Lions in this game. As a football fan, it’s honestly disrespectful. Every single facet of this team fell flat on its face. I applaud you brave souls that watched the entire game, but those are three hours of your life wasted. You could’ve carved a pumpkin or something.

Something needs to change.

At their current trajectory, the Lions are destined to go 0-17. This was their best opportunity to date to record a win. Instead, it turned into their worst game. Their loss to the Cincinatti Bengals was horrific, but this loss to the Philadelphia Eagles is up there for worst losses in the past 20 years. If the Lions lie to themselves that things are alright with the status quo, then heads need to roll.

Thankfully, I don’t think the staff is that delusional. Right?

With how the coaching staff has handled Jared Goff, I’m not too sure. The Lions were trailing 41-0 and Goff was still trotting out to lead the offense. You can argue that it wouldn’t have made a difference who’s playing with a deficit like that. However, it’s an awful look for the team. Goff is far and away one of the worst players on the field.

We had ANOTHER instance of him throwing the ball away on fourth down. He’s getting himself sacked on multiple occasions. He isn’t pushing the ball downfield. I mentioned this in my Bengals takeaway article: Goff needs to earn his starting role. With what we’ve seen on the field, he doesn’t deserve to be the starter. He is making rookie mistakes, and that might be an insult to rookies.

With Tim Boyle seemingly recovered from a hand injury—he was throwing without a brace in warmups—the upcoming bye week would be the perfect opportunity to play him. This team cannot seriously start Goff given the sour taste left by this humiliating defeat. Their opponents following the bye are the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the criticism of Goff will sound very loud until that game arrives.

You might say that David Blough would be the next-up, but despite a massive blowout, the Lions refused to play him until the very end. If they saw him as a potential starter, they would have played him earlier. Them sticking with Goff is either a sign of undying loyalty to Goff or a sign they don’t trust Blough. If Boyle doesn’t get hurt in the preseason, there’s no guarantee Blough even makes the roster.

There are tons of issues with this team. The defensive line got gashed by the Eagles' run game. The secondary was largely untested as a result, but with injuries mounting, it’s hard to feel confident in them against better passing attacks.

On offense, Taylor Decker is sorely missed. The pass blocking is struggling, especially Matt Nelson. However, even when the pocket is clean, Goff is still making things worse thanks to some awful pocket presence.

The “strength” of the offense is the run game, but D’Andre Swift is quietly struggling this year. Even when Jamaal Williams is healthy and running well, it doesn’t matter because the team has to abandon the run when they’re trailing—spoiler alert, they’re trailing a lot.

T.J. Hockenson may have had 89 receiving yards, but Goff clearly doesn’t trust any receivers, and that leads to a predictable offense. Better defenses will hone in on Hockenson and Swift.

I’m fed up with this team, as I imagine many of you are.

If this is the product the Lions continue to put on the field, then it isn’t worth watching. I know it’s a rebuild, but give us something to root for. Continuing to play Goff is a white flag of surrender. Tim Boyle might not make this offense better, but it seems like Goff has lost the locker room. He looks defeated on the sideline, and the rest of the team looks the same. If you cannot rally behind your quarterback, you need a new quarterback.